Nursing in Uganda = Learning Patience

Well I have been here in Uganda for almost 4 months now... how quickly the time has gone!!

Over these 4 months I have had a WIDE range of nursing experience. I wanted to expand on some of the highlights and frustrations of learning to be a nurse here in Uganda!

A few weeks ago  one of our little boys Sebastian had to have his third cleft palate surgery. We went to the best orthopedic and rehab hospital in Uganda- CoRSU. At first I wanted to be the one to stay overnight with Sebastian in the hospital. However, we decided it was best for a house mom to stay with him, and I would come during the day and help educate the house mom on being great as a hospital caregiver. Once I got to CoRSU, I was actually relieved about this decision... I knew many of the differences about Uganda hospitals, but this was even more extreme than I thought. Let me highlight some interesting parts about Ugandan hospital stays:
-Most of the time no food is provided to the patient or caregiver- caregiver is responsible for getting food
-At CoRSU, food was provided but to plates/cups/silverware, and you went and picked it up in a big line
-Most of the hospitals do no provide private rooms- it is a large ward with many beds. Sadly, the children's hospital in Jinja is so crowded that most of the patients even share a bed. This also means shared bathrooms and washrooms.
-Sheets (even for the patient) are often not provided and must be brought from home
-Nurses very rarely do assessments- only doctors
-While waiting fir Sebastian's surgery we set outside of the theater (operating room) building on a bench with about 10 other people waiting for surgery. They called patients in once someone else was out of surgery. We waited on a bench outside for over 5 hours before the surgery took place.
- In the Jinja Children's hospital (government funded) when they run out of IV tubing supplies or such, the parents actually have to leave the hospital to go buy the supplies in town on their own.

These are a few of the shocking differences we have found... Now don't get me wrong,  the American health care system is far from perfect! However, working in an amazing children's hospital in Fort Worth for over 2 years definitely set my standards for health care high! The people here are not surprised by these things either- they do not know differently.

Through this frequent struggle of learning how to operate in the health care system here in Uganda, I have grown tremendously. I am learning better patience,  grace, flexibility, reliance on God (not the healthcare system), communication in stressful/frustrating situations, and reliance on God (yes, again, I've learned a lot of it!)

If you are in America, be thankful for the parts of healthcare you take for granted. It might be frustrating waiting for an hour at the doctor or sitting for a few hours in the ER waiting on test results. But at least we are sitting on comfortable chairs, or probably have a private room with a TV. Again, not everything is perfect or even great in America healthcare... but you have no idea how extreme the difference is between the healthcare the average person in Uganda receives versus the average person in America.

All of this is to say that ultimately, our trust can not be in hospitals (Ugandan or American), doctors or nurses, medicine and treatments... God says he is bigger than all of that. All of our health and life is in His hands.

That people may know, from the rising of the sun

and from the west, that there is none besides me;

I am the LORD, and there is no other.

I form light and create darkness,

I make well-being and create calamity,

I am the LORD, who does all these things.

(Isaiah 45:6-7 ESV)

Having some fun with the adorable Sebastian before surgery

Outside of CoRSU hospital. This is where the families can dry their clothes (because many people only have outfits for a couple of days) and relax outside for the space

Sebastians hospital bed and the bed next to him (notice the urine bag of the other patient) The house mom was placing her straw mat on the floor to have somewhere to sleep at night. 

A view of the of beds next to Sebastian's

American Ugandans in Rwanda

So last weekend Dayna and I had a forced vacation :) Due to the slow immigration office process over the holidays, our work permits have not gone through yet. Since our visas we received upon entering the country expired at the end of three months (February 3rd), we needed to leave Uganda so we could obtain new visas when returning.

So, we planned a trip! It was very last minute. It was only about 10 days from hearing that we needed to leave the country until we boarded a bus to Rwanda! We picked Rwanda really just because it was close, and free to enter :)

We took a 12 hour bus ride to the capitol, Kigali. The bus ride was interesting... honestly, the actual bus was in better condition that I have guessed it would be. The 5 hour drive before we took a bathroom break though, was a little difficult! We survived though, and were picked up late at night in the taxi park by a driver from our hotel.

It was strange to adjust to another culture. We had finally become comfortable to Uganda... we can speak a tiny bit if Luganda, we know how to pay with shillings, we are use to driving on the left side, riding bodas with two people and no helmets... Now all the sudden people were speaking french, driving on the right side, and we had to convert Uganda shillings into Rwanda franks. Also, their bodas all require you to wear a helmet (which they provide) and only allow one person... It was crazy!! We definitely felt like we were Ugandan when we were there haha Ok, still American, but now with some Ugandan thrown in :)

Kigali is beautiful!!! Don't get me wrong, Uganda is beautiful too. However, Kampala, the capitol, is an absolutely crazy busy dusty dirty loud city. Its fun and vibrant, but so overwhelming. Kigali though was organized, calm,  and taxis and cars actually stopped for you to cross the street (something completely unheard of in Kampala). The entire city shuts down on the last Saturday of every month for city wide cleaning. Residents are to stay on the property and beautify it!

This is especially amazing considering the state of Rwanda only 19 years ago. If you don't know about the Rwanda genocide, it is definitely something you should learn more about. It is horrific... It, along with the many other genocides in history, are true reminders of the brokenness of the human race. Here is an except from the Human Rights Council:

"In 1994, Rwanda’s population of seven million was composed of three ethnic groups: Hutu (approximately 85%), Tutsi (14%) and Twa (1%). In the early 1990s, Hutu extremists within Rwanda’s political elite blamed the entire Tutsi minority population for the country’s increasing social, economic, and political pressures. Tutsi civilians were also accused of supporting a Tutsi-dominated rebel group, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF). Through the use of propaganda and constant political maneuvering, Habyarimana, who was the president at the time, and his group increased divisions between Hutu and Tutsi by the end of 1992. The Hutu remembered past years of oppressive Tutsi rule, and many of them not only resented but also feared the minority."

Then, in 1994 over the course of approximately 100 days, 800,000 men, women, and children were killed. Almost all of these deaths were from the Tutsi population. At the same time, thousands of Hutu were murdered because they opposed the killing campaign and the forces directing it. 

Most of you reading this were alive during this massacre. Have you heard of it? Did you know? Before  coming to Africa I barely knew of this incidence. I never learned about it in school... The movie "Hotel Rwanda" is one of the only reasons this genocide is well known to some in America. You should watch the movie if you haven't seen it. And remember, it is not just Hollywood....it all really happened to real families, to an entire country, less than 20 years ago. 

There is now a wonderful genocide memorial center in Kigali. It was very disturbing, but very informative. I was glad we were able to visit this site, and realize about all the tragedy that exists around the world. There is no way to really understand how many people were involved in this genocide, and many others around the world, and still think the human race is "good at heart". Think about how many people had to say "yes" for these killings to occur...

What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, as it is written:
“None is righteous, no, not one;
no one understands;
no one seeks for God.
All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
no one does good,
not even one.”
“Their throat is an open grave;
they use their tongues to deceive.”
“The venom of asps is under their lips.”
“Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
“Their feet are swift to shed blood;
in their paths are ruin and misery,
and the way of peace they have not known.”
“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.

(Romans 3:9-20 ESV)

BUT don't worry.... just keep reading


But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.
(Romans 3:21-25 ESV)


Praise God for His love!!!